Days with a lazy writer and busy crafter

DIY SCARVES: BETTER & BEAUTIFUL

So, I’ve had these simple scarves that I had crocheted a few years ago during my big crochet kick. I’m not sure why I don’t wear them more often because they are nice, comfy, and warm. But the bigger question is: Should turn these crocheted scarves into infinity scarves? I’ll answer that question with a question: Why not? Maybe I would wear the scarves more often if they were simple infinity scarves.

RILEY CLOSELY INSPECTS MY WORK

So, I took my two favorite crocheted scarves: a lovely dark brown with colorful specks and a black-white-green striped one. The obvious fix was simply sewing or crocheting the open ends together. I’m sure I could’ve figured out a way to crochet the ends together, but I didn’t want to take the time to do that. I opted for the easier and faster method — a straight stitch with my handy dandy sewing machine (completed before sewing machine kicked it).

THE SPECKLED BROWN CROCHETED SCARF SEW TOGETHER.

After wrestling with my sewing machine to fit the two scarf ends under the foot (or whatever it’s called), I sewed a simple straight stitch through the thick mass of yarn. I’m so proud of myself because I didn’t even break a needle and my sewing machine didn’t even attempt to eat the yarn! Yay me! With the two ends sewn together, I have a crocheted infinity scarf BUUUUUUT the length is too long. Seriously, it’s really long.

THE NEW SEAM ON THE GREEN STRIPY SCARF

During my crocheting scarf phase, I figured a long scarf would be better than a too short scarf. I have no idea how I came to that conclusion, but I stuck with it. Anyway, with the scarf looped twice, it’s just way too long for my personal taste. So, what now? Where do I even begin to shorten a crocheted infinity scarf? I found my answer while looking at knitted and crocheted infinity scarves online.

ANOTHER SNIP AND SMALL SECTION REMOVED

As much as I hated to cut a section of the crocheted scarf, I didn’t see another alternative to the solution. I looped the scarf twice, noted the desired length, and made two marks on the scarf, indicating my cut marks. I folded the scarf in half and lined up the two marks. After more wrestling and swearing with my sewing machine, the sewing needle was poised right above one of the marks.

BLACK YARN TIGHTLY WRAPPED AROUND THE NEW SEAM

Basically, I sewed a zig zag line stitch on the mark and then cut off the excess piece of the scarf. The stitch prevented the scarf from falling apart into a billion pieces after making the cut. Because sometimes I’m not the brightest person in the world, I probably would’ve made the two cuts first and then sewed the two new edges pieces together. Plan A (cut first sew later) would’ve made me cry, swear, and give up.

A LONGER SECTION OF WRAPPED BROWN YARN

So, I’m very grateful that Plan B (sew first cut later) popped into my head moments before my hand reached for the scissors. At this point, I could be done with the project, cleaning up the new seam and making sure the stitches won’t fall out. But I had a brilliant and beautiful plan. I took a few inches of the section containing the new seam and carefully wrapped matching brown yarn around the designated area.

EVENTUALLY I’LL ADD EMBELLISHMENTS ONCE I FIND THEM

I briefly thought about crocheting a simple two or three line strip to wrap around the scarf, but I decided against it. I wanted a different textured or pattern look to make this small section stand out a bit. So, I tightly wrapped matching yarn around the designated section, simply tying end pieces. Once I find or make the right accessories, I’ll probably add them to the scarves, but for now, I’m pretty happy with the minor fixes.